The Council of the Alhambra and Generalife has just published the catalogue for the exhibition about the first governor of the Monument, Íñigo López de Mendoza, entitled “The Tendilla. Lords of the Alhambra”, which is currently on display in the Chapel and the Crypt of the Palace of Charles V.
The book, which has 240 pages and an appendix in English, is being published in a first edition of 1000 copies. It consists of an introduction by the exhibition curator, Rafael López Guzmán, Professor of History of Art at the University of Granada, and 15 essays by different experts who explore the life and work of this fascinating historical figure, popularly known as the Great Tendilla (and as the Marquis of Mondéjar), and of his family, one of the most influential of his time. The book is on sale at the Alhambra bookshops.
The catalogue also contains pictures of all the different exhibits in the exhibition, laid out according to the different spaces into which the exhibition is divided, so as to provide a broad view of the legacy of the Tendilla family, from the 15th to the 18th centuries.
Since its inauguration on 6 April, almost 25,000 people have visited the exhibition, “The Tendillas. Lords of the Alhambra”, a tribute to one of the most crucial figures in the history of Granada and the Alhambra in the 15th century.
Íñigo López de Mendoza was appointed Governor of the Alhambra by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella and decided to preserve the most important part of the wonderful buildings left behind by the Nasrid Sultans. He also applied a policy of engagement with both the Moriscos and the Jews. His open-minded Renaissance humanist approach contributed to his becoming one of the main reasons why so much of the Alhambra has been preserved for our enjoyment today.